Rolling bearings are used, among other things, for the bearing and support of clutch units, for example in dry-plate clutches, or as transmission bearings. Here separate connection and retaining devices, such as bearing carriers, for example, are generally needed in order to fasten the rolling bearings to other components, such as rotatable clutch plates, for example, or a stationary housing. The rolling bearings generally comprise an inner ring and an outer ring and rolling elements arranged between these rings, the rolling elements rolling on bearing surfaces of the inner ring and the outer ring, so that a relative movement between the outer ring and the inner ring is possible.
The use of separate clutch plates and separate bearing carriers, however, requires additional fitting of these components to the rolling bearing. The rolling bearing and the clutch plate or the rolling bearing and the bearing carrier therefore first have to be assembled in an initial operation, before the rolling bearing can be fitted in subsequent operations. In addition, such a design requires a suitable connection of the components to the inner ring or the outer ring, which, due to the space taken up by this connection, however, and the generally very restricted overall space of such rolling bearings means that the entire rolling bearing has to be made smaller or that smaller rolling elements have to be used. Their support force and durability are thereby reduced. In addition, the small overall space means that the rolling bearing is capable of affording only a small space for lubricants. As a result this lubricant space can only accommodate an insufficient quantity of lubricant, so that a required service life of the lubricant or grease cannot be achieved.
Due in particular to the confined overall space, fastening the bearing carrier to the outer ring of the rolling bearing is therefore used in existing bearings, allowing the bearing carrier to provide a flange for fastening the rolling bearing to a stationary component. Accordingly the clutch plate is generally fastened to the inner ring.
DE 10 2005 014 916 A1 discloses a radial bearing for a vehicle drive shaft. This comprises a radial bearing, on an outer ring of which a separate retaining element or bearing carrier impinges. The retaining element comprises a flange for fastening the radial bearing, the outer ring being held in the retaining element in such a way that the radial bearing can be self-centering.
The publication DE 200 16 713 U1 discloses a bearing arrangement, which comprises a rotatable inner ring having a flange connected to a printing press roller. The associated outer ring likewise comprises a flange, which is attached to a stationary housing.